Virginia House Passes Slate of Renter Protections

New bills aim to prevent evictions and support military members and low-income tenants

Published on Feb. 10, 2026

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The Virginia House of Delegates has passed a series of amendments to the state's Landlord and Tenant Act that Democrats say will help prevent evictions. The changes include reducing the notice period for military members to end a lease, removing requirements for tenants to pay rent into court before asserting a defense, and prohibiting large landlords from discriminating against prospective tenants with past evictions on their record.

Why it matters

These new renter protections are aimed at supporting vulnerable populations, including military members and low-income tenants, during a time of rising housing costs and eviction rates in Virginia. The legislation seeks to create more stability and fairness in the rental market.

The details

Key provisions of the new renter protection bills include: reducing the notice period for military members to end a lease from 60 to 30 days, removing the requirement for tenants to pay rent into court before asserting a defense, preventing large landlords from discriminating against prospective tenants with past evictions, capping landlord attorney fees at $50 if a tenant pays all money due, and deeming air conditioning an essential service that landlords must provide.

  • The Virginia House of Delegates passed the slate of renter protection bills on February 10, 2026.

The players

Del. Michael Feggans

A Virginia Beach Democrat who proposed a bill to reduce the notice period for military members to end a lease.

Del. Phil Hernandez

A Norfolk Democrat who proposed bills to prevent large landlords from discriminating against prospective tenants with past evictions and to cap landlord attorney fees.

Sen. Glen Sturtevant

A Chesterfield Republican who argued the focus should be on making it easier for people to purchase homes rather than increasing renter protections.

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What they’re saying

“I know firsthand how stressful these moments are. This bill allows military service members or their family members to end a lease without a penalty.”

— Del. Michael Feggans (pilotonline.com)

“I think that the American dream is not renting for your entire life. A lot of the focus that we're seeing in the Democrat bills is focusing on making it harder on landlords and rental situations. The more red tape and the more fees where they tie the hands of the landlords, many of whom are just sort of mom-and-pop small landlords, all of these increased costs are just going to end up getting passed on to the renters and drive up the renter price.”

— Sen. Glen Sturtevant (pilotonline.com)

What’s next

The renter protection bills now move to the Virginia Senate for consideration. If passed by the Senate and signed by Gov. Spanberger, the new laws would go into effect later in 2026.

The takeaway

These new renter protections in Virginia aim to create more stability and fairness in the rental market, particularly for vulnerable populations like military members and low-income tenants. However, some Republican lawmakers argue the focus should be on making homeownership more accessible instead.